The truth is hidden within the lies
by Molly
Summary: Can you really be a spy against Voldemort and escape unscared ? That's the question Henri (my character) asks himself every day - Prequel to the Causualties of War
1. I wish you could see the way you kiss

Henry

**I wish you could see the way you kiss**

(Part One of "The Truth is hidden within the lies" series)

_A/N - YAH !!! Harry didn't die…they didn't rename the town Potterville…Mary didn't become a Librarian…..All because of George…..you know it makes sense if you think about it. _

_Disclaimer - I own all the characters, all of them, every single one. But alas I don't own the setting…whoa is me_

_Memory refresher - This is occurring about fifteen years before July 31st, 1981. James and Lily are probably seven or eight. In this story, John Potter is James's father, just to keep it straight _

  
Henri Parsons was late, but he didn't care. He seemed to be late a lot lately. He pulled his coat closer as he opened the door to the Leaky Caldron, a small pub unnoticed by most Londoners on the street. He slipped in, the warm air hitting him in a rush, quickly bringing back feeling to his ears. The room was dark and smoky, but it was warmer then the outside, so it didn't matter. Taking off his coat, he scanned the room, finally making his way over to the table that Samuel was sitting at, in the corner of the room.   
  
"You're late" Samuel said, looking up from his newspaper that he was reading. 

"Sorry…sorry" Henri sat down, trying to straighten out his windblown hair. "The underground was hell." Samuel gave him a strange look. 

"Why didn't you apparate? We have graduated you know, we can use magic outside of Hogwarts."   
  
"Well, some of us aren't as lucky to pass the test on our first try you know." He paused, " So when is Marilla going to get here?" He asked, trying to change the subject. 

"I take it your didn't pass your test yesterday?" Samuel laughed. They had graduated six months ago, and almost all the graduating class has past the apparation test, except for Henri. Samuel checked his watch.   
  
"In about two minutes, but then again, she can apparate." Henri glared at him.   
  
"Very funny"   
  
"Well, it is actually. You graduated the head of the class and it's been six months and you still haven't passed the test."   
  
"They were on my off days" Henri said defensively.   
  
"Everything you do wrong is on your off days Henri" a female voice from behind him said.   
  
"Well, that's because it's true" He replied, turning around and noticing the small girl being him. "So glad to finally see you again, Marilla " He said in a voice that was pretty obvious he wasn't glad to finally see her again.   
  
"You too, Samuel didn't tell me you were coming today." She glared at Samuel, making sure Henri couldn't see it. All Samuel did was shrug. She sat down beside Samuel and a tall red haired girl sat on the other side of her. Henri looked over curiously. He had never seen this girl before. She had white skin, dark red hair, and the bluest eyes Henri had ever seen. She wasn't extremely beautiful, but yet he couldn't take his eyes from her. She had this air of mysteriousness about her that Henri couldn't place. Marilla noticed Henri staring at her friend, and introduced the two boys to her. "Oh I forgot, this is my friend Ellen MacKenzie from home. Ellen, these are Samuel and Henri, you remember me telling you about them." She smiled at Samuel and Henri knew exactly what she had been telling Ellen about his friend. His description, on the other hand wouldn't have been so pleasant, considering there was no lost love between Marilla and himself.   
  
"Nice to meet you" she said in a soft Scottish accent. Henri was mesmerized. For the first time in his life he thought he was in love.   
  
"So, did you go to Hogwarts?" Samuel finally asked, obviously not as mesmerized by this girl as Henri was. 

"No, I was home schooled by my mother in Scotland." 

"Was your mother a witch?"   
  
"No, she was part druid, but I was raised in a wizard village.   
  
"I thought druids were small?" Henri asked rather stupidly. She laughed, her voice sounding like small bells.   
  
"Aye, well, my father was a typical highlander. I got my height from him."   
  
"But you know how to apparate, right?" Samuel randomly asked.   
  
"Aye, of course" Henri kicked Samuel under the table. "I've been able to apparate since the age of twelve…not legally of course" she gave a grin.   
  
"Well, Henri here has yet to master the technique, maybe you could give him a few pointers." That resulted in another kick, harder this time.   
  
"I almost got it" Henri grumbled.   
  
"Almost got it, you left your left leg in Aberdeen last time, and you were supposed to go to South Dakota"   
  
"As I said, I almost got it, There is an Aberdeen in South Dakota, so there. Some of us aren't perfect you know" he kicked Samuel again.   
  
"Hey, stop kicking me"   
  
"Well, stop mocking me"   
  
"I'm just getting you back for all the times you teased me in school."   
  
"I never teased you in school."   
  
"You did, you teased me about my Defense against the Dark arts grade all the time."   
  
"If it hadn't had been for me, you would have never passed Defense against the dark arts."   
  
"Just because you were the best in the class doesn't mean I couldn't do it without your help."   
  
"It is my fault that I happened to know more about the dark arts then any of our professors." 

"No, but you don't have to rub it in everyone's face." 

"I don't rub, I resent that statement." By this time both of them were yelling. Marilla grabbed her wand and quickly put a silencing charm around their table.   
  
"Are they always like this?" Ellen whispered over to Marilla, watching the two boys.   
  
"No, not all the time, sometimes they actually get along, but those are few and far between." Marilla rolled her eyes, "You'll get used to it after a while. I learned how to do a silencing charm real quick in school." Finally the boys quieted down, glaring at each other over their drinks.   
  
"I got to go, I'm late for work." Henri finally said, standing up.   
  
"Where do you work?" Ellen asked, looking up at him.   
  
"At the ministry" he finally got out. 

"Henri and I are both assistants in the accidental charms department." 

"Oh is that so," Even though Samuel was speaking, her eyes were focused on Henri. "Charms have always interested me. I have to go the Ministry anyway, do you mind if I accompany you?" She smiled at him.  
  
"Sure, if you don't mind walking." He replied, returning the smile. 

"Not at all" she stood up, pulling her coat over her shoulders. 

The two of them walked down the street in silence. Well, it wasn't like they had any choice, the wind was blowing too hard to have a decent conversation. It would have been so much easier to apparate Henri thought as he struggled to walk in a straight line, but then he glanced over at Ellen, and decided maybe it wasn't.   
  
Ellen watched him out the corner of her eye, glancing at her every couple of seconds. He was certainly very different then she has expected. From what Marilla had told her, she had expected him to be a horrible person, evil to the bone. She got the impression that Marilla didn't like him too much, but she figured out that probably the feeling was mutual. From what she had experienced, he seemed very nice, but then again she had only known him for less then half an hour. He certainly was very cute, that is if you consider dark, brooding, and mysterious cute, which she certainly did. There certainly was a lack of dark and mysterious males in her small village where she grew up. He was tall and slender, but not slender enough so he looked like a stick. He had thick black hair that fell over his face at the perfect angle, light skin, and round dark brown eyes. They weren't exactly brown, she thought, looking again, more like dark chocolate. He walked with an air about him like he was in charge, but yet she sensed that he feared other people, or what they thought of him. The only thing that bothered her was that she knew he was lying about being able apparate, but she couldn't figure out why. It didn't seem like that kind of thing that you would lie about.   
  
Finally they reached the lobby of the Ministry building. "So, it was nice walking with you." He stuttered, not being able to think of anything else to say. Good going Henri, he thought mentally kicking himself.   
  
"Aye, I'll see you around then" Neither of them moved.   
  
"I better be going now, I'm going to be late" Henri said, but still didn't move. Suddenly a man called out her name, breaking their concentration. 

"I've got to go" she quickly said, running after the man. Henri waited till she was out of sight before apparating away.   
  


  
  
"You're late" Mr. Hawkins said as Henri appeared in the center of the office.   
  
"Well, it's pretty hard to be on time when everyone believes that I can't apparate. Tell me again why I am lying to all my friends and family?" Henri replied, sitting himself down on the couch.   
  
"Because it's protocol. I don't make the rules; I just enforce them. Plus it keeps suspicion down." He shrugged. " It's one of those things that everyone has to do, you're not being singled out."   
  
"So why did you call me here today?" 

"Sit down" Henri did just that. "It has been discovered that there is a mole at the Centre" 

"What, you don't think" Henri said shocked. He quickly jumped up. " It wasn't me, if that's what this meeting is all about."   
  
"Henri, calm down. " he motioned for Henri to sit back down, which he did, reluctantly. "I'm not accusing you. You haven't been here long enough to be accused. But the mole did give out some important information and well, last night…how can I put it Henri, John is dead." Henri felt like his jaw fell to the floor. He couldn't believe it. No, not John. He had been like a father to Henri, when Henri's father couldn't be there for him. He couldn't say his father was a bad father, he was the best he could be, under the circumstances. But John was much more then that, he was Henri's mentor, he was the one who got him into the Centre in the first place.   
  
"I know you were close to John, so I felt it would be best if it came from me."   
  
"What…what about his family? Sara? James?"   
  
"They are being well provided for by the Centre, let me assure you." He smiled sadly and handed Henri a tissue. "They will never have a want or need in this world. Except for a father of course." He paused, as if pondering what to say next. "You may not realize it yet Henri, but here at the Centre we are like family, and when one of us leaves our ranks, it is a great loss. But that wasn't the only reason I called you here today. I also understand that John was your teacher here, your mentor?"   
  
"Yes Sir, he was. Does that mean I will start learning from someone else now?"   
  
"Well, not exactly. From what I've read of John's notes you were an excellent learner, and the council has decided that you can take the initiation test now. Maybe by next week you will be a member of the Centre as well."   
  
"Thank…thank you sir" Henri said shocked. He had only been training for six months, normally it took a recruit at least a year before he was complete with his training and ready to test, but it was hard to be happy for his accomplishments when his mentor was dead.   
  
"We will notify you of the test date sometime early next week."   
  
"Thank you again sir" Henri said, standing up shakily.   
  
"It's no problem. Now go home"   
  
"But..." Henri protested.   
  
"No if ands or buts, now go home. I'll send a message to the accidental charms department and tell him of your absence." Henri nodded, and without another word, apparated to the front stoop of the apartment Samuel and he rented. He knew Samuel would be at work right now, so he didn't worry about anyone important catching him apparate. He sat down on his doorstep and that's where Ellen and Marilla found him four hours later. 

Ellen looked at her watch, they still had twenty minutes before they had to be at Samuel's, and it was only a block away. Sure it was raining, but that wouldn't cause that much of a delay. "What's the hurry?" she asked, looking over at her friend.   
  
"I was hoping to get there and be gone before Henri came home. He usually doesn't return from the Ministry till at least six."   
  
"You didn't invite him?" Ellen asked, already knowing the answer.   
  
"Nope"   
  
"Why do you hate him anyway ?" Marilla stopped walking and faced Ellen.   
  
"His family practices the dark arts, he practices the dark arts, and you did know that, right?"   
  
"How can you be so sure, he was in Gryffindor, was he not? From what you've told me, the dark wizards aren't in that house."   
  
"There can always be exceptions. Plus how could he have known so much about dark arts in school. Ellen, please stay away from him. I would have never introduced him if he hadn't been best friends with Samuel. I don't even know why they are friends. He always gives me the creeps. The way he looks at you" She gave a dramatic shudder to get her point across. "He's bad news Ellen, trust me." Ellen didn't have time to respond to that statement because they had come up on Samuel's building. "Speak of the devil" Marilla said, pointing to a figure sitting on the rain soaked stoop. "Why in the world would he be home early, of all the days?" Ellen shrugged. Marilla continued past him as they walked up the stairs but Ellen stopped, and drying off a place beside him, sat down. Her friend gave her a disapproving look, but entered the house without a comment.   
  
"Penny for your thoughts?" He didn't respond. He didn't even give any notice that he knew she was there. "Still mourning about failing your apparation test?" she asked, in a half joking manner. He finally looked up at her, his face white as a sheet, only made whiter by his black hair. His eyes had turned to a complete black color, losing their brown tint, looking more like charcoal, and if Ellen didn't know any better she would have swore he was evil. For a moment she actually believed that maybe Marilla was correct.   
  
"If only it was that simple," he said, his voice the softest of whispers. He brushed a raindrop of the front of his robes, but it didn't matter, being that they were soaked through anyway.   
  
"How long have you been out here?" she asked, touching his hand. They were as cold as ice. "You're freezing." 

"I don't know" He turned back to face her. "It wasn't raining when I came home."   
  
"God" she cried, throwing her cloak around him. "It's been raining for the last three hours. What are you trying to do, kill yourself." He shrugged, but didn't respond. "Come on, you're going inside." He didn't protest as she took his arm and pulled him into the house. She finally got him seated by the fire when Samuel and Marilla came downstairs.   
  
"Ready to go Ellen?" Marilla called from the front hall of the apartment.   
  
"I think I'm going to stay here tonight. You two go have fun without me."   
  
"You can go, you don't have to stay on my account" Henri said, his voice a little louder then a whisper. 

"No, that's okay. I …I …I would like to stay" She finally got out, glancing over and their eyes met. She realized that the reason that she rather stay here wasn't because she didn't want to spend the whole evening watching her friend flirt with her boyfriend, but because she wanted to stay with him, to make sure he was all right, but that wasn't the only reason, just the reason she kept on telling herself. Marilla glared at her.   
  
"Remember what we talked about"   
  
"I know" she glared back. Marilla shook her head, and then followed Samuel out the door, leaving the two of them alone.   
  
"I take it she had her little talk with you about me already. She's getting quick, we've only known each other one day." Henri said, his voice almost back to normal. Ellen didn't have to answer for him to know she had. "She doesn't like me you know"   
  
"I got that impression." Ellen replied, sitting down on the couch beside him and handing over a blanket. 

"I take it she told you to stay away from me, that I would lead to trouble." Ellen shrugged. 

"Something like that" 

"That I practiced the dark arts" She didn't have to answer, but her expression gave away any chance of her appearing nonpartisan on it. There was silence. Finally Ellen asked what she had wanted to know all evening. 

"Well, do you?" 

"What do you think?" She paused, trying to figure out her answer. If she said yes and he didn't he would obviously be very insulted, and if she said no and he did, well she didn't want to think about that possibility. 

"I would be hoping the answer would be no" she finally said, watching his face closely for any response. He was almost impossible to read. What was she doing, god she had only know him for a day, a single day, less then 24 hours, and she was alone with him, in his house. She shivered involuntarily. He didn't answer, but instead moved forward and kissed her. It wasn't a forced kiss, she could have pulled away if she desired, but she didn't. Although the rest of his body was cold, his mouth was surprisingly warm and after the initial shock of being kissed by someone she barely knew, she found she rather enjoyed herself, which surprised her. After about ten seconds he pulled away. 

"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over Me. " He replied softly, looking away. 

"It's okay, really" Ellen replied, trying to do her best not to laugh. It would inappropriate for her to laugh at such a moment, but yet she had a hard time not. He looked so guilty, like he had done something very very wrong.  He finally looked back at her. 

"Miss MacKenzie, may I ask permission to kiss you again?" He asked, brushing the hair out of his face, and smiling sweetly. He looked so innocent, looked more like a nine year old then a nineteen year old. 

"But of course Mr. Parsons, I would be honored." She replied, not sure if it was herself speaking, or somebody else. She thought herself a reasonable girl, not someone to rush into something like this, but yet, yet this was different. Then he kissed her again, and if she thought that the last kiss she had received was the best of her life, she changed her opinion with this one. You know how sometimes when you kiss someone, it just seems wrong, well to Ellen, this kiss seemed right in every way possible. It was then; even only after a day that Ellen realized that she was in love with this mysterious handsome young man, even after all the warning. When they separated, she was trembling slightly, not exactly sure why. He put his arms around her, and pulled her close, her head resting in the crook of his neck. She could feel his heart beating underneath his thin robe, and the wetness of his shirt against her cheek made her realize that this wasn't really a dream and she smiled slightly to herself.  In the back of her mind she remembered that he still had not told her if he did practice dark arts or not, but at the moment it didn't quite seem important, not important at all. 

  
  
Samuel and Marilla came home hours later and found them wrapped up in a blanket, curled up on the couch, both asleep. Ellen had her head resting on Henri's chest, and he had his left arm around her, his fingers intertwined within her hair.  Both had very contented looks on their faces. The sweetness of the situation made Samuel sick, although even though he had been dorm-mates with Henri for seven years, and he had seen him sleep numerous times, he had never seen him sleep with that exact expression on his face. It was as if he was completely and genuinely happy. 

"Quiet" Samuel whispered to Marilla who was just hanging up her cloak.   
  
"What?" she replied, coming over to where he was standing. Damn, Marilla thought, looking at the two of them. What I told her was suppose to separate them, not bring them together. 

"You planning on waking them, or should I?" 

"I'm not planning on, and neither are you" Samuel replied, holding her back. "Anyway, you were planning on saying over anyway, right" He gave her a smug look and motioned towards the stairs. 

"Now that you suggest it, it does seem like a good idea." She replied, smiling and pulling Samuel towards the bedroom. 

Henri woke up the next morning with sunlight streaming down on his face. This confused him at first being that his bedroom was on the opposite side of the house, so the sun never woke him up in the morning. The other thing that confused him was the fact that he felt something laying on his chest. 

"You're awake" the something on his chest said. 

"Yup" he smiled, remembering last night and who exactly the something on his chest was. 

"I dare say I don't like that smile Mr. Parsons, it seems devious and quite suspicious." Ellen commented, brushing her hair out of her face and looking up at him. 

"Well Miss MacKenzie, if you knew me at all, you would realize I am devious and suspicious" He replied, trying to look stern and serious, but failing incredibly and making her burst into laughter, and kiss him quickly on the check, which in turn made his inside go to mush. 

"What time is it?" he finally asked, when he got his speaking skills back in capacity. He squinted at he clock on the mantle.   
  
"About half past eight. The clock says we still have about ten minutes before breakfast time." 

"Ah, so I still have time to relax" He placed his head back on the arm of the couch and closed his eyes. 

"So you never answered my question last night," Ellen said suddenly, after about two minutes of silence. 

"What question?" Then he remembered what started all this in the first place. He groaned. "Oh that question." 

"So?" She used her elbows to prop herself up and look at him. 

"Before I give you a definite answer, what would you do if I said yes?" 

"Well first I would slap you"  he cringed. " Then I would go about trying to change you." 

"Change me eh? What if I cannot be changed?" 

"Then I'd run back home to Scotland, and proceed to tell my father how you hurt his little girl, who in turn would teach you a lesson." She replied dramatically. It was driving her crazy; she couldn't read him, not at all, not one bit. He lifted her off him, and placed her on the couch, so they were face to face. Gripping her upper arms, a little harder then she would have liked, he just stared into her eyes, as if he was probing her. She gulped and tried to pull back, but the grip on her arms was too strong. She suddenly felt very vulnerable, knowing that even with his wand on the other side of the room, she still was at his mercy. Looking up in his eyes she saw eyes all void of emotion. Stop it Ellen, she told herself, he is just trying to scare you. Well it's working she told herself back. 

"Henri please" she whispered. He finally shifted his eyes and noticed she had tears streaming down her face. She didn't even realize she had started crying. He broke from whatever trance he was in; releasing the grip he had on her arms. She jumped up and quickly moved to the part of the room farthest away from him. 

"Oh Ellen, I'm so sorry. I didn't me to hurt you, honest. It's just that..." He never got to finish because Marilla decided to choose that exact time to walk into the room, and seeing Ellen sobbing in one corner and Henri standing in the other she assumed the worst. 

"Ellen, I'm heading home, are you coming?" She said to her best friend, all the while glaring at Henri. Ellen nodded and dashed out of the room before Henri had any chance to protest. "You stay away from her," She hissed, pointing her finger at Henri once Ellen was out of the room. 

"Who are you to tell me who I can and cannot see" Henri replied, returning the glare. As Ellen just found out, Henri could look malevolence when he wanted to be, and he knew it. Of course with Ellen, he hadn't meant it. Most of the time he disliked it intensely, and it caused him much annoyance, such as while he was at school, he had many experiences where other students who didn't know him assumed he was in Slytherin, and how they had believed Marilla's outrageous rumor that he practiced dark arts. The only person, except for the professors that believed him was Samuel, and that's because he had known Henri since they were first years on the train, and of course there was the promise they made. Samuel knew Henri would never break a blood promise. But right now he was taking full advantage of this characteristic. Marilla unconsciously took a step back. 

"I am her best friend, that's who I am, and I don't want her to be corrupted by the likes of you." 

"Likes of me…likes of me" Henri threw up his arms in protest. "What are you afraid of, that I'll corrupt her with the lack of skill in the art of apparating. That her hanging around me will make her lose her ability to apparate." He was absolutely furious now. 

"You know exactly what I mean Henri Parsons." Her voice was a low grade hiss. 

"Oh I don't…do please tell" He took another step forward. 

"That you…that you..." but she couldn't finish her sentence. 

"Can't say it can you. You know why?" She only glared. "You can't say it because you know it's a lie. I have never practiced a dark spell while I was at school, and never will, and you know it." Marilla didn't know about before school, and for that he was thankful, for it would only had added fuel to her fire. 

"How am I to know that" she finally said, getting her courage back. "You were the top in DDFA after all." 

"What you say is true, yes. I cannot deny that. But you are missing a key word here…DEFENSE against the dark arts. I wasn't practicing the dark arts; I just knew how to defend myself against them. There is a difference you know." Marilla stuttered, caught in her own trap. Neither of them had noticed that by this time Ellen had been watching from the doorway. She had, for the most part, heard the whole conversation. She didn't interrupt, but continued to listen silently. "But of course you wouldn't know that would you, considering you always think the worst of people, or is it because you still hold a grudge over that incident in our fifth year, that you only think the worst of me." 

"That was very hurtful thing to say Henri Parsons, I demand you take it all back." 

"Hurtful, that wasn't even close to hurtful. Let me give you an example of hurtful. Hurtful is more like when you tell the person who I am in love with that I practice the dark arts, especially in a time where practicing the dark arts is not something that people look too kindly upon.  Now that's very hurtful, trust me; and the thing about that is, you can't take that back now, can you? I can say I'm sorry Marilla, I didn't mean what I said, and you would believe it, and there would be no harm done, but what you said she has already made an assumption, and not you or me or anyone can change that." Ellen certainly heard that statement, and it caused, if anything a loud gasp from her and an immediate need to lean on the wall for support. The two of them stopped arguing and turned to face her, both faces full of emotion, Henri's of embarrassment and Marilla's of horror. 

"Ellen what are you doing?" Marilla said. 

"So is it true?" Ellen asked, not even acting like Marilla had said anything. Henri shook his head yes and cleared his throat, afraid to say anything more, hoping a simple head nod would be enough, because he didn't know what would happen if he tried to speak. Ellen was the only woman on earth who had the power to render him speechless. 

"I….I…." he tried to say but she stopped his mouth with her own. It was as if the rest of the world has disappeared and they were in the only two in it. If it had been a movie this would have been when the music swelled in the background. Neither of them even noticed when Marilla threw up her arms in disgust and walked out of the room. Finally, much to the sheer disappointment of both of them, they had to stop for lack of air. 

"I love you so much," Henri finally said, brushing a piece of hair out of her eyes. 

"You're just saying that because you want to shag me." Ellen said, trying to sound serious. He laughed. 

"Yeah, that too." He kissed her again. They didn't even notice for him to leave for work had come and gone. 

"I am really really sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to scare you like that." He said sometime later when they were sitting on the couch. "It's just well, lets just say, I've had some not so fun experiences with dark arts, and it's not something I enjoy talking about."

"That's okay" She replied, picking up her legs and curling up beside him. "I'll just add that to my list of things I know about you" 

"I have a list eh? May I know what is on this list of things about me?" 

"Okay, but you asked for it." She pretended like she conjured up a notebook and started reading from it. "Henri Parsons, one…. Mysterious, sexy, and extremely good looking." He laughed. 

"Are you sure you're reading from the right list, that doesn't sound a bit like me. 

"Of course, the pretend notebook never lies." She looked up at him. "Now shall I continue." 

"Of course" 

"Number two, works for the accidental charms division of the Ministry. Number three, doesn't know how to apparate. Number four, also doesn't practice the dark arts, much to the insistence of my stupid friend." She snuggled closer to him, feeling him tense up at the mention of this. "And lastly, enjoys unintentionally scaring people out of their minds." 

"Who said anything about enjoying it?" 

"Oh come on, you can't say you didn't enjoy scaring Marilla back then." 

"All right, I did enjoy that, but that was an exception." She laughed.   
  
"So, is there anything else I should know? Like you can turn yourself into a dog, or are a spy like 007?" He tensed at the mention of spy, but hoped she didn't notice.   
  
"Nope, nothing" he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her. "Nothing else"   
  
  
  
  



	2. One Simple Moment

The Fight 

The Love reflecting in my Eyes

_This takes place about seven years before Voldemort was defeated, and ten years after the previous story. Henri and Ellen have been married for eight years and they have a six-year-old daughter Sydney who is the star of a later part, which was actually written first. It would have been about 1974, give or take a year, I'm not exactly sure. James and Lily are about 7th years, not that that has any relation to the story at all.**Disclaimer** – Same as the first part _

The room was completely dark, inky dark if you would go so far as to describe it. It was one of those darks where you could just barely see your hand in front of your face. Of course Henri didn't care what type of dark it was, only that it was, for it fit exactly the mood he was in at the moment. He didn't have to look over to the empty spot in the bed beside him to remember what had taken place earlier that night, of the fight that occurred, which was why he was sleeping alone, and she was sleeping with their daughter. He wondered how she found out? Did she find the hood, or maybe the letters? Or was it the dark mark, which he had spent so much time trying to hide. He unconsciously touched the spot on his left arm.He had kept it hidden for these last couple of months, but she was his wife, she was bound to find it someday.

Suddenly he heard the little pitter-patter of stocking feet and turning towards the door he saw the small figure of their six year old daughter Sydney standing there holding her bunny under one arm. 

"Daddy?" she said softly. "Mummy took my bed, can I come sleep here?" He couldn't have said no even if he had wanted to. Even with her young mind she knew her parents were fighting, she could sense it. Her parents never fought, or at least she could never remember them fighting. She loved her mother like all little girls should, but she loved her father more. There was no direct reasoning she could think of for this, but she did. He beckoned for her to come into the room without making a sound.A couple seconds later he felt movement on the bed beside him, and Sydney throw her arms around him. 

" Goodnight Daddy" she said in her small six-year-old voice, giving him a kiss on the cheek. 

"Goodnight darling" he said softly, looking down, but she was already asleep, her small body curled up beside him, and putting his arm around her for a moment he could forget that after earlier that night this would probably be the last chance he would ever see her again. 

Henri woke up early the next morning, and sitting up noticed that Sydney was still asleep, the sunlight reflecting off her coal black hair that was covering her face like a mask. She had the same color hair as he did, but her mother's eyes. He was glad she was still asleep, so he didn't have to look into her eyes. Pulling on his regular robes, he got ready for the day. He didn't take him long, for most of the mornings he was distracted by Ellen. Closing the door softly, as not to wake his daughter, he walked down the darkened hallway, stopping only in front of Sydney's door, which was open. He meant just to close it quietly, but instead her just stood there, watching Ellen sleep. Watching her there, he couldn't help thinking of the night before. The yelling and screaming, there was so much yelling and screaming, mostly on her part, only on her part. He figured that whatever he had to say would probably dig him deeper in the hole he was already in. Half of what she said was incomprehensible, but it didn't matter. Finally she stopped, burst into tears and ran out of the room. He hadn't said a word in his defense. He didn't know how much time passed while he was standing in the doorway. Ellen knew he was there, she could sense it, but she wasn't about to let him know that she was awake. She switched potions and noticed that Sydney wasn't in the bed with her. He better not hurt her, she thought, starting to get angry. _Stop it Ellen_ she thought angrily to herself. How could she dare think that about Henri, he was her father, he would never hurt Sydney, or at least the Henri she knew yesterday wouldn't have, she didn't know anymore._Why? Why Henri, Why? _You swore to me the first day we met that you didn't practice the dark arts, why couldn't you have been telling the truth then. _But if you knew the truth would you still have married him? _She wanted the answer to be no, but she knew in her heard that it was yes. Of course she still would have married him. _Go away Henri, leave the house right now and never come back_. As if he got her subliminal message, she heard the noise of a cloak turning, and the door shutting quietly, like he originally attended to. Hurrying down the stairs, Henri slipped out the front door, and apparated to the Ministry, where he continued his mundane job as assistant to the head of the Accidental charms division. 

Hours past and he still couldn't concentrate, couldn't even think straight. He had been working on the same report all day, and hadn't written a sentence.Finally he realized that he wasn't going to get work done at the office, at least as long as the fight remained unsettled. Maybe now she would listen to reason, or at least let him explain himself. Grabbing his cloak off the chair, and making sure no one was looking he apparated to the front of his home. He heard his daughter Sydney singing as soon as he entered, and so he knew at least she hadn't left him, not yet anyway. Sydney was sitting at the kitchen table drawing, and looked up when he came into the room.

"Mommy is mad at you" she said matter of factly. 

"Did she say why she was mad at me sweetie?" he asked, sitting down beside her. 

"Nope" she continued with her drawing. Hearing footsteps he turned around, seeing Ellen in the doorway. 

"You get away from her," She practically hissed at him in a cold tone. In the eight years he had known her he had never heard her speak to him, or anyone in that tone. She pulled out her wand and pointed it straight at his heart. "If you don't get out of this house right now I'll hex you, and don't you dare think I won't, because I will, I promise." 

"Ellen, Listen." He jumped up. 

"I have nothing to hear from you." She went over and helped Sydney down from the chair. 

"Sydney darling, why don't you wait for me upstairs, we'll be leaving in a few minutes." She said in a completely different, but false tone. Sydney dashed out of the room. It frightened her to see her parents fight. 

"Where are you going?" 

"We're going to my parents. I'm leaving Henri," she said, forcefully picking up Sydney's drawing things. 

"Won't you at least let me explain?" he said desperately. 

"What is there to explain? I saw it with my eyes, you can't just explain that away." 

"It's not like that" 

"Not like what" Her voice was rising; she had broken a pencil but didn't even notice. "So that dark mark I saw was just an illusion, my eyes were playing tricks on me. Do you think if I had any choice in the matter I would want this to happen. All this time I thought you were on our side Henri, and it turns out that you're not. I can't believe Marilla was right all along." She paused to catch her breath. He took a step forward, and she put out her hand to stop him. "Don't even think about coming near me." 

"Ellen please" 

"Don't Ellen please me. How do you think that makes me feel? Betrayed doesn't even being to describe it. And if you think I'm going to leave my daughter to be in danger, you have to be kidding. I loved you, once, but I could never love someone who follows him." She spat the last word. 

"I don't follow him, I'm a spy," he blurted out quickly before he lost the courage to say it. Just telling one person was going against Centre doctrine, and he could be greatly punished if anyone found out, but he didn't care. Not losing Ellen was more important to him then anything else in the world. She opened her mouth to speak again, but nothing came out. 

"So not only did you join the dark side, but you spy for them as well." She finally stuttered out. 

"No" he put his hand out in protest. "For the ministry, well not exactly the ministry, but a group associated with the ministry." He was rambling and he knew it. "For the last six months. I wanted to tell you, I wanted to tell someone, but I couldn't." She watched him, trying to figure out if he was telling the truth or not. She wanted to believe him, oh how she wanted to believe him more then anything, but there was still that small voice in the back of her head saying that no, he was just making up excuses."Please, you have to trust me" his eyes were begging. This was killing her, but she had no choice. 

"Henri, I'm sorry but I just don't know who to trust anymore" and with that she turned and walked out of the kitchen, leaving him standing shocked. 

She hurried up the stairs as fast as she could, wanting to get out of this house as fast as possible. She had already packed bags for herself and Sydney, so all she had to do was grab them and touch the portkey which she had pre-set to go to her mothers home.Sydney was waiting at the top of the stairs holding her bunny. "You ready to go darling?" 

"Is Daddy coming?" Sydney asked, looking past her mother down the stairs. 

"No, he's coming later" she lied, knowing fair well Sydney would put up a fight if her father wasn't coming as well. Soon she would tell her daughter the truth, not here, not now. Grabbing Sydney's hand, she picked up a family picture from the side table, and immediately felt the pulling sensations, and the next thing she knew she was standing on her parent's lawn in the Highlands of Scotland. 

A month past, and she hadn't heard a word from Henri. She hoped at first that he would try and contact her, but when he didn't, she just started to believe that her assumptions that he had gone over to the dark side were correct. She never assumed she would miss him so much though. Every morning she would wake up and the rolling over felt a pang in her chest when she realized that he wasn't sleeping beside her, or he hadn't been sleeping beside her.Sydney was worse. Every five minutes it was 'Where is Daddy?" or "When is daddy coming?" or she would just on the front lawn and wait for hours upon end. 

Then she got news, news that normally would be joyous and happy, but under the circumstances wasn't. She found out she was with child. "You have to tell him," her father said, later that night, looking up from the floor where he was trying to get Sydney to play Exploding Snap with him. 

"But why?" she brought her knees up to her chest and curled up, staring off into space. 

"Because it's his child and he has the right to know." 

"We're not saying you have to go and visit him, just write him a letter." Her mother said, sitting down beside her daughter on the couch and putting her arm around her. Ellen could feel the tears starting to come, again. Every time she even thought of Henri she had to urge to cry, but held herself back. His sweet touch and warm embrace, even looking at Sydney was hard. How her daughter looked so much like her father was definitely noticeable. She had his hair, his light skin, even some of his mannerisms Ellen noticed Sydney picked up. 

"I miss him so much Mother" Ellen sobbed, pulling herself closer to her mother, wishing she was a small child again. Mrs. McKenzie made a gesture at her husband, motioning for him to get Sydney out of the room. 

"I'm sure you do dear, but you have to forget him and move on with your life. He betrayed you greatly. You have Sydney and another child on the way to think about" She replied, stroking her daughters hair softly.

"But what he was telling the truth… what if…" she said, voicing the doubts she had been having for weeks. 

"But he wasn't" her mother said forcefully. " Now why don't you go to bed, you've had a long day."So Ellen got up and slowly made her way to the door. "Ellen, just think about it, okay?" Ellen nodded in response, and then headed up to bed, alone.

She quickly turned the key and slipped unnoticed into the house. Henri obviously hadn't changed the wards since she left so she could still enter undetected. She knew he would be at work right now, and wanted to do this without his knowledge. All she had to do was leave the letter, and leave. Why she didn't just do it by owl was beyond her, but something told her she needed to do it in person. Of course what she didn't take into account was that he had stopped going to work, at least at the Ministry, since she had left. Hearing a noise in what was his study she went to investigate. She peaked in and it took her totally by surprise to see him sitting in the corner talking to someone in the fireplace. She gasped, but luckily he was too involved with who he was talking to notice. Try as she might she couldn't pull herself away. 

"No, I haven't found anything else out yet." Henri said irritated. The face responded, but she couldn't catch what it said. "I know it's been six weeks, but what you're expecting is miracles. He doesn't go around telling every random person in his circle his plans. My fathers name only gets me so far and you know it." A pause, "Listen, I'm sorry, I just think some one might be suspicious. I just wanted to be careful. If I get myself killed it's not going to do us any good, now is it?" He shrugged. "No she hasn't returned yet, and I'm starting to believe she never will." Another pause, "Yes I told her, I know it's against doctrine, but I don't care. She didn't believe me anyway." His shoulders started to droop. "Yes, I'll be careful, and yes I'll try to find out who he's planning on striking next, though it's going to be difficult. Yes, of course, I'll report back next Saturday." And then the fire went out. Henri stood up, and Ellen quickly backed away, not wanting him to see her standing in the doorway. Of course she forgot about the plant behind her and backed right into it. "What the @#$#%$?" he swore, hearing the noise. Running was the first thing that came to mind, and so she ran as fast as she could down the hall and up the stairs. She hurried into the first dark room she saw, which was Sydney's room. 

"All right, who's there? I know someone is there. The house is inescapable, come out now. " He called from the front landing. _My God, he was telling the truth_, she thought her mind spinning. _All this time he really was telling the truth, he really was a spy, is a spy_. She mentally slapped herself. How could she ever think that he was a dark wizard, this was Henri she was talking about, her husband, the man who she loved, how could she not trust him.She's the one who should be begging for forgiveness from him, not the other way around. Peaking out of the door, she saw him on the top landing, wand in hand. Ellen knew she was never going to get out of the house without confronting him, and that was one of the last things she wanted to do. She felt so stupid, so ashamed. She glanced around the room. If only she could open the window, and then when she was on the ledge apparate away. Forgetting that the wards included the windows, when she touched it, she got an electric shock strong enough to throw her back and leave her dazed. Of course Henri heard the noise and came running, thinking he had heard the intruder. Great was his surprise when he saw who it actually was. 

"Ellen?" He looked at her confused, wondering if his eyes deceived him. 

"What?" She responded defensively, getting up and dusting herself off. 

"What…what are you doing here?" He asked, obviously shaken. 

"I have every right to be here you know." 

"Yes, but.." He couldn't finish his sentence. He brushed his hair back, totally flustered.Finally he regained composer. "Never mind, you're right, Good day" and with a swish of his robes, he turned from the room. 

"Henri, wait" she called out before she could stop herself.He stopped but didn't turn around. "There is a reason I came here today. There is something I needed to tell you, something I needed to tell you in person" He paused, waiting for her to go on. "I'm…. I'm with child." She had no idea what made her say that, it just came out. She told him, which solved that problem.He waited a moment, as if he was trying to regain composer of himself. 

"Why are you telling me this Ellen? Why don't you just say, hey Henri I have another child, but I'm not going to let you ever see him or her, because I think you're evil. Why even tell me at all?"He finally said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. 

"Henri, it's not like that" She was doing her best to not cry, to stand there and keep her voice calm. He turned around, anger in his gesture, but a completely different set of emotions in his eyes. There was sadness, betrayal, apprehension, bewilderment, suspicion, fear, but most of all love. She felt something inside of her snap; whatever that had kept her from believing him in the fist place was gone. In one swift movement she crossed the room and threw her arms around him. He stiffed up, confused, but sunk to the floor with her. She just buried her head in his robe, mumbling, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry" over and over again. He smelled like spices and a forest in the fall, a smell that she loved. She didn't want to ever move from this place, curled up with his arms around her. It was the most comforting place, where nothing with the realities of life could harm her. 

"Oh Ellen, it's okay." He whispered, stroking her hair. She finally looked up at him, and he noticed she had been crying. "Don't cry" he gently kissed a tear off her cheek. This small act of kindness made her cry harder.Finally she calmed herself down, and found herself sitting beside him on the wall, her hand clutched tightly in his own, as if he was afraid to let go of her, that she might disappear. 

"Why Henri? Why did you have to be a spy? Why you? " She asked, catching his eyes with her own. He looked away. 

"My father was an extremely powerful dark wizard," he said after a minute of silence. " He was the head advisor to Grindelwald before he was defeated in 1945. I was a year old. My mother was already dead. I don't know how he got away after the defeat, but he did. My father was the only person I knew growing up except for our neighbors, which consisted of a man and his wife and their one child who was ten years younger then myself. When I entered Hogwarts I probably knew more dark spells then all of the Slytherins combined. My father had taught me well." He couldn't say this without a small bit of sarcasm and anger seeping into his tone."He was positive that's where I would be sorted, but the sorting hat surprised everyone by putting me in Gryffindor. I'm sure even the professors were sure I was going to be in Slytherin. I have been told that I was certainly my fathers' son. I had met Samuel on the train, and he was the first friend I really ever had. All I wanted was to be in the same house as he would be in, and since he was before me, he was sorted first and made the decision for me. I always wonder if I had been sorted first, would I have gone to Slytherin instead. They say the sorting hat has been known to put you where you want to be, and even with all the ideas of power that had been drilled in my head since I was a small child, I chose friendship.My father would have killed me if he knew that I had actually wanted to be in Gryffindor, but instead he thought it was an accident, said he didn't want a Gryffindor as a son, and cut me off without a dime. I never saw him. I didn't care; I hated my father. I don't know what happened to him, he could be in Azkaban for all I know. At school it was pretty hard to keep the truth about who he really was hidden from me. When I graduated I was immediately recruited by the Centre, which is a small intelligence group affiliated with the Ministry. They taught me everything, including how to apparate, so that my apparation signal wouldn't be recorded by the Ministry. Everyone who works for the Centre has a unrecognizable apparation code. A year ago Marcus, who was spying against you-know-who, was killed, and I was immediately assigned the job, I was perfect, considering whom my father was, considering my family history, the fact that I was a Gryffindor could be ignored. I didn't want to do it" He choked on his words. "I was so afraid…so frightened that even though I hadn't performed a dark spell since I was eleven, that it was still up there, and that I might slip, break my promise to Dumbledore in a moment of weakness. The only thing that kept me sane was the knowledge that my life wouldn't be worth living if I did. The last thing I wanted was to end up like my father. " He stopped, and finally looked back at her, hesitant for her reaction.Ellen didn't want to move, didn't want to accept the reality of life around her. She couldn't believe it though, she had been married to Henri for six years, and yet there was so much that she didn't know about him. Finally when she regained composer of herself she looked up.He was watching her intently. 

"I don't know what to say" 

"You don't have to say anything, you asked why and I told you why. I felt you as my wife deserved the right to know." He stood up, helping her up as well. Suddenly she picked up her hand and slapped him across the cheek. He jumped back out of surprise from this action. 

"What was that for?" he asked, certainly very confused. 

"Remember when we first met, and I asked you if you were involved in the dark arts?" He nodded, remembered that day perfectly. " Do you remember what I said I would do if you said yes?" 

"You said you would slap me" he replied, it suddenly coming clear. 

"Do you remember what I said next?"

"That you would try and change me?"She nodded. "But I don't need changing"

"Then I certainly got my work cut out for me then, don't I" She pulled him close, placing her head on his shoulder. They stood there, not moving, till the clock struck four. "I've got to go," she said suddenly, jumping back. She was supposed to pick up Sydney at her mothers house an hour ago. 

"Go?" He asked, with a hint of confusion in his voice. 

"I have to go pick up our daughter and bring her home, you can come if you want" His face lit up like a child's. 

"Of course." He followed her out of the house, picking up his cloak on the way out. They apparated to her parents house in Scotland, and for the first time he didn't worry that she saw him, since she knew the truth. Her mother greeted them at the door, and she didn't look happy at all, but she stepped aside to let the two of them by. If looked could kill, Henri would have been dead on that stoop right then. Her eyes probed his, as to say, _what are you doing here_? He tightened his grip on Ellen's hand, as to say, _this is why I am here_.

"Ellen, darling, can I speak to you in the other room please?" Mrs. MacKenzie said, nodding towards the living room. 

"I'll be right back, don't worry" Ellen whispered to him, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before following her mother. He knew his mother-in-law would do almost anything to convince her daughter not to come back with him. He was left alone in the foyer, but not for long. Padded footsteps were heard coming down the front hall, and they were too light to be any of the men of the house. His daughters' head peaked around the corner. Ian, a small boy from the down the street that she had been playing with said that there was a strange scary looking man in the hall, and of course she wanted to go and investigate. She stopped and quickly did a double take, making sure she really did see her father in the hall. Finally she decided he was for real. 

"DADDY!" she cried, running over to him and throwing her arms around his neck and he bent down to pick her up.

"Hey Sydney darling" he replied, giving her a quick kiss on the forehead. He didn't want to put her back down again, and apparently Sydney had come to the same decision, snuggling up to his shoulder. 

"Where have you been? Mummy wouldn't say." She asked, looking up at him with those blue eyes of hers. 

"I've been really busy darling, I'm sorry. I promise never to do it again. " He replied, grateful Ellen hadn't told Sydney anything.

"Sydney, are you coming?" a small annoyed male voice said from behind them. Henri turned around, noticing a small mousy haired boy who couldn't be older then six standing in the doorway. He took one looked at Sydney, another at Henri and then took an unconscious step backwards. This man frightened him, and he couldn't understand why Sydney was hugging him. 

"Ian, this is my Daddy. Daddy this is Ian, he lives down the street." 

"Ian, nice to meet you." Henri said, smiling at the small boy. 

"Sydney" Ian said, half whining, half begging.

"Darling, why don't you start to pack, Mommy and I are going home soon okay" Henri said, putting Sydney back on the ground and giving her a push towards Ian, who certainly looked relieved to leave the room. Standing alone in the foyer again he couldn't help overhearing the argument that was going on in the other room. 

"Ellen, What are you doing, bringing him" she spat the word him with utter distaste, like he was a disgusting bug or slug, "into this house. I thought you told us that you were going to have him out of your life." 

"I know mother, but plans change. I love him, and if you love a person you can't just give up like that." 

"Pah, you don't love him. That isn't love." 

"How can you say that? We've been married for eight years, who are you to judge on our love." 

"You may love him, but he certainly doesn't love you. He's using you Ellen, and I just don't want you to get hurt that's all." 

"He's not using me, if anything I'm using him" her voice was rising in anger. Henri felt the urge to go through the door and protest, but something held him back. 

"He has you under a curse doesn't he. He's controlling you again." 

"MOTHER, how dare you ever even suggest a thing!" Her voice held that cold tone that Henri had only heard once before, and that was that day a month ago. 

"Well, what do you expect me to say? Last night you were crying, saying how much he hurt you, and now you're acting like he's the greatest person in the world, like nothing happened."

"Please, you have to believe me. Things have changed, I was mistaken." There was silence. Henri peaked in, still in the shadows so they couldn't see him. Ellen had her back to him, and her mother was facing the door. He could see Mrs. MacKenzies face, and it was as if she was still trying to figure out if it really was her daughter speaking or not. Finally her face relaxed. 

"All right, I believe you." Ellen threw herself into her mothers' arms. "But, if anything happens to you or my grandchildren, I will have my revenge." Ellen laughed and took a step back. 

"Okay Mother, you can have your revenge. Anyway, I have to go. It's late and I suspect Sydney will want to spend sufficient time with her father before she goes to bed."

Which was true of course, because she kept her father busy in her room long after her bedtime. He finally got her to bed, almost temped to use a sleeping charm on her. She fell asleep in the middle of one of his stories, and shutting off the light, he made his way from her room back to his own.Ellen was sitting in bed, reading a book. She looked up and smiled at him when he entered. Slipping off him clothes from the day, he put on something comfortable to sleep in, and slipped into bed.Putting her book on the bedside table, she slid down beside him, curling her legs around his. He relaxed and draping his arm around her shoulder, pulled her close. It was something she had missed, being so close to someone; it was as if the two one them had been combined into one. It was one of those things that she didn't realized she had missed, but now that they were back, she knew where that small part of her that was missing went. 

"I love you," he whispered, his voice muffled by her hair. 

"I know." She mumbled and then slowly slipped into the world of dreams. He stayed awake for a bit longer, watching her sleep. He felt the same as he did when they first married, and he would stay away and watch her sleep, amazing that she was actually his wife, that she had actually agreed to marry him. If you had told him yesterday that he would have been laying here, actually not alone, he would have doubted your sanity, but yet, here he was. The last month was hell, and the only thing that kept him going was the knowledge that she was out there, somewhere and there was the small chance that she might come back. She made him whole, his other half, his good. He wasn't good alone, he was never good, he knew that, had always known that. The fact that they expected him to be good was what kept him going in the right direction. The fact that Samuel, that the headmaster, and that most importantly that Ellen expected him to be good stopped him for continuing the family history, from following in his father's footsteps.She had more power over him then any one else in the world, but of course he didn't mind. He watched her for a few more minutes, till finally his own sleep overcame him and he drifted away, to a place that was peaceful and all was right with the world

A/N – Okay, so here it is, the next part will be up pretty soon, soon being probably not within the next week, but probably within the next month. I do have finals after all. It's written down in my daybook, but not transferred to computer yet. The next part will be a transition stage between this and the part I wrote a long time ago and is already posted. It will take place about two years later and make everything fall into place. Hope you enjoy it so far, and although I am not one to beg for reviews, I do ask. It makes me sad to see people with 277 some odd reviews and me with like 2. 

Copy write 2001 MollyCo~

Also – I am looking for a Beta reader, so if anyone has any suggestions I would really appreciate it…thanks a million and a half 


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